U.S.Secretary of State John Kerry was due to leave Washington late on March 10 for a visit to Saudi Arabia and to France for talks with Saudi and European officials about the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, and Libya.

The U.S. State Department said Kerry would first visit the Saudi city of Hafar al-Batin near the border with Iraq and Kuwait.

His visit there comes just after the completion of a three-week counterterrorism exercise by 20 countries in the Saudi-led coalition that is fighting militants who call themselves the Islamic State (IS).

Kerry is due to meet with the foreign ministers of France, Britain, Germany, and Italy -- along with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini -- when he visit Paris on March 13.

In addition to the fighting in Syria, Yemen and Libya, Kerry was expected in Paris to discuss the migrant crisis facing Europe.